Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Friday that his party was in a position to form and take charge of the government in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, whose incumbent prime minister faces a no-confidence motion.
In his press conference alongside PPP leaders in Islamabad, Bilawal remained tight-lipped about his party's candidate for the prime minister’s slot.
"Don’t worry, that announcement will be made from Kashmir, not Islamabad," quipped Bilawal, the former foreign minister, when asked about the nominee's name.
The PPP chief said that the new Leader of the House would be announced when the no-confidence motion is moved against the incumbent PM.
The PPP chairman emphasised that his party was committed to resolving Kashmir’s issues, saying that during his tenure as foreign minister, he highlighted the Kashmir issue both domestically and internationally.
“For three generations, the PPP has fought Kashmir’s cause across the world,” said Bilawal, who also led Pakistan’s delegation to counter the Indian narrative after the May war.
Bilawal claimed that the PPP had won the AJK elections during the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government's tenure in the federal government, despite facing a wide range of challenges.
However, the PPP's victory in AJK was "turned into a defeat", he said. Despite the loss, the PPP continued to represent the people everywhere, he added.
While he affirmed that his party was in a position to take charge of the government, Bilawal said that the remaining term of the AJK Assembly "will be a test for the PPP".
The PPP claimed securing the number required for forming a government in AJK after several members of PTI forward bloc joined its ranks.
The PPP’s seats jumped to 27 from 17 seats after 10 PTI lawmakers joined the party during a meeting with Faryal Talpur on October 27.
The same day, PML-N — which has nine seats in the AJK Legislative Assembly — announced its support for PPP’s no-confidence motion against the AJK prime minister.
Senior leaders from both parties, including PML-N's Rana Sanaullah and PPP's Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and Qamar Zaman Kaira, held a press conference to confirm their alliance on the no-confidence motion.